Fincham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.
Fincham is located south of King's Lynn and west of Norwich.
History Fincham's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for a homestead or settlement with an abundance of finches.
The Roman Fen Causeway once ran through Fincham meaning the parish has yielded numerous Roman artefacts including three separate hoards of silver coins, a curious figure of a hare and hound and a bust of Jupiter. The foundations of a Roman building have been discovered in the north of the parish, which have been excavated by Norfolk Heritage in the 1990s.
The parish has also yielded many artefacts from the Anglo-Saxon period including rare coins dating from the reign of King Rædwald and another that was minted in Maastricht. With later coins found dating from the reigns of King Cnut and Æthelred the Unready.
In the Domesday Book, Fincham is listed as a settlement of 164 households in the hundred of Clackclose. In 1086, the village was divided between the East Anglian estates of William de Warenne, Hermer de Ferrers, Bury St Edmunds Abbey, St. Etheldreda's Abbey, Ralph Baynard and Reginald, son of Ivo.
Fincham Hall is a manor-house dating from the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries, with an earlier octagonal brick tower. Today, the hall is available for tourists to rent on Airbnb. Talbot Hall was built in Eighteenth Century and was notable for hosting an impressive collection of orchids currently displayed in Kew Botanical Gardens.
Geography According to the 2021 census, Fincham has a population of 514 people which shows an increase from the 496 people listed in the 2011 census.
Most of Fincham village is a dedicated conservation area due to its distinct rural character.
St. Martin's Church Fincham's parish church is dedicated to Saint Martin, with the exterior of the church dating from the Fifteenth Century and the interior being the remains of an extensive Nineteenth Century restoration. St. Martin's is located within the village on the High Street and has been Grade I listed since 1959. St. Martin's font is famous throughout Norfolk due to the fact it stands on four separate legs and depicts scenes from The Gospel of Christ.
Fincham once had another church, dedicated to Saint Michael, but this fell into disuse and was subsequently demolished in the mid-Nineteenth Century.
Amenities Though at one time Fincham was home to five public houses, today only one remains- 'The Swan'. The pub has stood on its current site since the late-Eighteenth Century and today operates as a freehouse.
Fincham Memorial Hall is located close to the Village Green, and is the venue for monthly car boot sales and the annual Village Fete. The hall has been severely damaged twice in recent memory, once after an illegal rave and secondly by flooding in Winter of 2010.
As of 2016, the village was home to a petrol station and a hairdressing salon.
In 2005, the Fincham Chorus was formed by people from Fincham and the surrounding area. To date, they have staged several concerts and performed at one wedding, as well as taking part in the Christmas carol services. To date, they have raised over £10,000 for St Martin's Church restoration fund.
Governance Feltwell is part of the electoral ward of Airfield for local elections and is part of the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk
The village's national constituency is South West Norfolk which has been represented by Labour's Terry Jermy MP since 2024.
War memorial Fincham War Memorial is a square plinth topped with a crucifix, made from Portland stone and located inside St. Martin's Churchyard. The memorial was restored in 2012 with the partition chains around the memorial being stolen in 2013 and subsequently replaced. The memorial lists the following names for the First World War: +RankNameUnitDate of deathBurial/CommemorationLt.William CraneGeneral List13 Mar. 1918St. Mary's ChurchSgt.George Harvey1st Bn., Norfolk Regiment8 Nov. 1918Les Baraques CemeteryCpl.Philip J. Laws9th Bn., Yorkshire Regiment15 Jan. 1916Calais Southern CemeteryLCpl.Ernest Lankfer18th Bn., Highland Light Infantry26 Oct. 1917Tyne CotLCpl.Sydney Bacon1st Bn., Norfolk Regiment19 Dec. 1914Menin GateGnr.Bertie W. Sculpher322nd Bty., Royal Garrison Artillery18 Jul. 1917Ravenna War CemeteryPte.Thomas Utting4th Bn., Bedfordshire Regiment10 Apr. 1916Ladywell CemeteryPte.George Nelson2nd Bn., Cheshire Regiment15 Apr. 1918Doiran MemorialPte.Isaac Sculpher1st Bn., Coldstream Guards26 Jan. 1915Cabaret-Rouge CemeteryPte.Harry Jude1st Bn., East Surrey Regiment15 Sep. 1916Thiepval MemorialPte.Robert Secker1st Bn., Essex Regiment13 Aug. 1915Helles MemorialPte.Albert G. Bly1st Bn., Norfolk Regiment16 Jul. 1915Étaples Military CemeteryPte.Bert Bell7th Bn., Norfolk Regt.22 Jul. 1917Duisans British CemeteryPte.Arthur Elliott8th Bn., Norfolk Regt.9 Nov. 1917Dozinghem CemeteryPte.Charles R. Wilding8th Bn., Norfolk Regt.5 Dec. 1915Norfolk CemeteryPte.Ralph H. Bacon9th Bn., Norfolk Regt.21 Mar. 1918Arras MemorialPte.Jotham A. Bywater9th Bn., Norfolk Regt.26 Sep. 1915Loos MemorialPte.Benjamin J. Barker6th Bn., Northamptonshire Regiment17 Feb. 1917Regina Trench CemeteryPte.Robert R. Bellham2nd Bn., Royal Sussex Regiment15 Jul. 1916Thiepval MemorialPte.Fred W. E. Upshaw2/5th Bn., West Yorkshire Regiment20 Jul. 1918Marfaux CemeteryRfn.Percy W. Bacon13th Bn., King's Royal Rifle Corps21 Mar. 1918Tyne CotRfn.John Johnson13th Bn., K.R.R.C.13 Jun. 1916Thiepval Memorial The following names were added following the Second World War: +RankNameUnitDate of deathBurial/CommemorationFOHugh Mason DFMNo. 83 Squadron RAF27 Apr. 1944Durnbach War CemeteryCpl.Douglas E. G. Drew1st Bn., Suffolk Regiment31 May 1940Oostvleteren ChurchyardPte.Alan M. Lambert1st Bn., Royal Norfolk Regiment6 Jun. 1944Hermanville War CemeteryPte.James W. Cameron5th Bn., Royal Norfolks26 Jun. 1943Kanchanaburi War Cemetery
Footnotes
References
Notes
External links – Parish Council Website St. Martin's – A church near you Memorial Hall History Society Fincham and the Finchams